How Can Shipping Affect Your eBay Seller Rating?

“Shipping Time” and “Shipping Charges” are two of the four factors that determine your eBay seller rating. Make sure you keep them strong.

How many of us have find an item we want on eBay only to be stopped from purchasing when we see excessive shipping charges or marginal buyer reviews about the seller’s shipping performance? A poor overall seller rating can derail a thriving or promising eBay-based business. If you sell frequently on eBay or hope to start doing so, these shipping tips can help keep your business in review heaven.

Invest in Your Shipping

If you are moving in volume, you need to have plenty of shipping supplies on hand. The bare necessities include:

Boxes and envelopes that can fit any of the items you are selling

Bubble wrap

Packing peanuts

Label printer

Another useful shipping tool is a weight scale. It allows you to give an accurate assessment on shipping charges as part of your item description. Seeing outrageous charges for just getting your merchandise begs the question – are you overcompensating with the item description? Will you do a great job packaging the item? A shipping scale can help you be more accurate with your shipping costs up front.

Package Your Merchandise Right

“Item as Described” is another criteria for eBay seller ratings. If the buyer receives their package and the item is broken due to damage from shipping, it isn’t the “item as described.” This will likely be reflected in any subsequent review.

Minimize the risk of damages during shipping by packaging your merchandise with an abundance of bubble wrap, shipping peanuts, newspaper - whatever it takes. Leave no space in the box for items to shift during shipment. Wrap the box up tight with plenty of packing tape, too. A negative review for shipments that are too well packaged speaks more to Gladys Kravitz Syndrome that the buyer may be experiencing than anything else. For those who aren’t sure of the reference, it’s a thing. Gladys is a character in the beloved TV sitcom Bewitched, starring Elizabeth Montgomery, Dick York and Alice Pearce as their classic nosy neighbor.

Consider Your Shipping Options

There are many options for shipping eBay merchandise. Any experienced seller knows that the bigger the item, the higher the shipping cost. Bulky or multi-box items can start to run up a significant shipping cost, enough that the expense may derail a sale. Consider a discount shipping option such as Busfreighter.com. Utilizing the Greyhound Package Express (GPX) network, Busfreighter.com can get multi-box or big, bulky items shipped across the country for less. You can also choose door-to-door and station-to-station options for pick-up and delivery.

This is where that fourth eBay seller feedback factor comes into play – “Communication.” If you use a discount shipping option, there may be a trade-off. With Busfreighter.com, there is cost and reliability, but that can come at the expense of time – we are an overnight shipping company. Make sure this is clear in the your shipping information and item description. Use the Instant Quote tool to determine cost and get an idea of timeframe for shipping your item(s) across the country.

Busfreighter.com – Still the Best Kept Secret in Shipping

The more you ship, the more you save! Together, Busfreighter.com and GPX have nearly 30 years combined experience facilitating package shipments via a nationwide bus network. Our service is a great way to ship multiple boxes across the country while keeping within your budget. Whether you are relocating to a new city or shipping purchases to Etsy or Ebay customers, Busfreighter.com is an economical way to send packages long distance. Visit www.Busfreighter.com, fill the Instant Quote & Ordering form, buy moving supplies direct from the factory and save.